Christmas Wishes
by xmoonlightxwingsx
Summary: It's Christmas time for the Flock. Are you ready for a blow-out snowball fight, a feelings debut, and some couple taking things to the next level? If not, get ready. Rated T. Fax and other pairings, NOW COMPLETE! SEQUEL ON WAY!
1. Chapter 1

_Hey! It's me! I wanted to get in the spirit of the holidays, so what's better than to write a Christmas Fic! Woot woot!_

_Tomorrow's my birthday, so I probably won't post._

_A/N: This is four years in the future._

_Disclaimer: I do not own Maximum Ride._

_Claimer: Hazel, Arianna, Alex, Ryan, Siberia, and Iceland._

_If you steal them, I will rip you're head off myself. Just Kidding! You may use them, but you have to use a disclaimer thingy. _

_Christmas Wishes_

I nibbled on a chocolate chip cookie, savoring its chocolaty goodness. I was in the living room of the new house mom bought for us, watching T.V. with Fang while the kids played outside in the snow. I was currently wrapped up in a warm blanket, on the crème suede couch, pitying myself. I was sick. Psh. Max is sick? No way! Yes way! And it sucks big time. Fang was with me because he claimed that playing in the snow is for 'babies' not 'big, strong men' like himself. Hah. But, I was glad that he was here. He was keeping me from my insanity.

I was enjoying the peacefulness of the house, taking in the smell of hot chocolate and chocolate chip cookies baking, the wood smell of the fire burning in the fireplace, and the warmth radiating from Siberia and Iceland when the door burst open.

The wind howled through the house, making the once warm air freezing. Nudge, Gazzy, Angel, Iggy, Arianna, Hazel, Ryan, Ella, and Alex stood in the doorway, dripping wet and covered in snow.

Let me catch you up. We destroyed Itex four years ago, gaining Arianna, Ryan, Hazel, Siberia, and Iceland (Siberia and Iceland are our talking Siberian huskies) in the process. Me and Fang confessed our feelings and have been together since Christmas four years ago. Me, Fang, Iggy, and Arianna are all 17. Angel is ten, Gazzy and Hazel are twelve. Nudge, Ella, and Alex are fifteen. Ryan is 16. We found out what all of our birthdays are too. Mine's Christmas day. Ironic huh? Fang's is the 27th of December and Iggy's is the 30th. Arianna's is the 29th. It's funny how we all are in December. Angel's is May 17, Gazzy's is August 25, Hazel's is February 14, Nudge's is January 1, and Ryan's is November 10. I'm not getting into years, it would be too confusing…not that it already is.

Iggy and Arianna are together, so are Nudge and Ryan. Ella and Alex are going steady and she wanted him to come up here to visit us. Did I mention that the house is in the Colorado Mountains? And it's like a mansion? Oops. Must have slipped my mind.

"Ma-ax! Can you please come out? It's so fun! The snow is soooooo fluffy and soft! There's sooooo much to do too! I've never seen snow before! I mean I probably have but, that was, like, a looooooong time ago! You can make snowmen, snow angels, snowballs, eat the snow-oh! You can only eat it if it isn't yellow! Cuz, that's gross! You guys are so boring! All you do is sit and hang out in here. BORRRRING! Come outside! It'll be fun! We can have, like, snowman building competitions, sled races, and snowball fights-OOOH!!! Are those chocolate chip cookies? Those are soooo good! Right Ryan? I wanna go back out. Max! Fang! Come out!!! I order you!" Nudge rambled, finally stopping, out of breath. She has become quite stunning over the years, her mass of curls had smoothed out to soft ringlets, her mocha skin had an earthy glow to it, her features became more prominent, and it was hard to believe that Ryan didn't fall for her beforehand.

"Nudge, sweetie, I don't think going outside is good for Max right now," Mom called from the humungous kitchen.

"Nudge! Why don't you ever ask us to come out and play?" Siberia asked from my lap.

"OH, my god! I am sooooo sorry, Siberia! Do you guys wanna come out? You can be our sled dogs! It'll be sooo much fun! We can have-"

"Nah. I am fine right here on Max's lap," Siberia said a matter-of-factly, interrupting her.

"Aw. Fang can you come?" Nudge went to full on bambi eyes, her lip pouting, making her look like a puppy.

"Not today, Nudge. I have to keep someone from going insane." He smirked and glanced at me. I scowled and rolled my eyes.

"Maybe tomorrow when I'm feeling better," my raspy voice reassured her. I was sure that no one wanted to keep on seeing that face. Plus, I was tired of being talked for.

Her face perked up immediately. "Okay! Let's go make Total and Akila be our sled dogs!" she ushered the kids out of the door, keeping Ryan's tan hand tightly in hers. Angel lingered behind the others. Suddenly, she came running towards me, an evil look in her eye.

She tackled me farther into the couch, getting me soaked with snow. I had forgotten about the snow thing. She was so going to get it tomorrow.

"I don't want to get in trouble, Max!" Her face came out of my semi-curly hair, her bright blue eyes full of worry.

"Silly goose! I'm not mad at you. You're just gonna pay when I come out tomorrow!" I teased. She grinned at me, making me happy. _That's my girl. _She's changed so much since we destroyed Itex. Her matted curls had grown down to the middle of her back, her eyes became wide and bright, her height increasing to 4'2" and her wings have grown substantially to almost eleven feet. Fang always told me that she looked like a little Max. I always smiled whenever he said that. I made me so proud.

_I'm happy to be like you._

_I'm happy you like being like me._

_Has Fang kissed you today? Is that what he means by keeping you from going insane?_

A blush crept up onto my face. _No! He's just keeping me company! He's too preoccupied with his blog anyway._

_Oh. But his thoughts says that he wants to kiss you really badly. He just doesn't want to get sick. He thinks you're still contagious._

A wry smile slowly spread across my face. _Really? Well, I think it's time for you to go back outside. Ok?_

_I love your plan! Oh. Ok, I'll go tell Nudge! She'll love it!_

Angel scampered out of the house, obviously going to tell everyone about the trick I was going to play on Fang.

I snuggled up to him, and traced his muscular arms. His head turned slowly, his face betraying confusion.

"What are you doing?"

My hazel eyes turned into the dreaded bambi eyes that he could never resist.

"You know what I want. I know you want it too," I said in a baby voice. His eyes widened, and he jumped off the couch.

"No. Don't come anywhere near me."

"Or what? You'll use your mega eraser fighting skills on your girlfriend?"

"Yeah. My _girlfriend _is sick, and I don't want to get it."

"Ugh!" I crawled off of the couch, jostling a mumbling Siberia, and faced him. I folded my arms across my chest and smirked. I leaned in closer and whispered in his face, "I'm not contagious, silly Fang." Before I could catch him, he dodged and went to the other corner of the large living room.

"Oh, no."

I crossed the room in three full strides and poked him hard in the chest. "What are ya gonna do know, Fangy? Use those mad skills? You know you can't hurt me," I teased in a low voice.

"Really?"

"Yes, really."

"Do you wanna try me?" he asked, his face inching closer to mine.

"Mhm…," I murmured, inhaling the scent of him. _He smells so good…Mm…_ My eyes fluttered close, and I truly thought that he was going to kiss me. Oh, how I was wrong. Instead, he tackled me to the ground easily, since I was completely defenseless.

"Oh, so that's how you want to play it, huh? Bring it on," I whispered to myself.

Suddenly feeling so much better, I kneed him in the chest, leaving him temporarily weakened. Using this to my advantage, I leapt up and crossed the room towards the couch. As I was inching towards it, he recovered and stood lopsidedly. His signature smirk was plastered on his face as he came to me in two strides. I imitated it perfectly, starting to feel a tad smug. I knew he was going to give in. I've been sick for three days, therefore making him feel unloved. He just couldn't resist.

"What are you doing?" I asked a little frantically, for he stopped right in front of me, a mischievous glint in his dark brown eyes.

"This," he sighed and pushed me gently into the cushiony surface of the crème couch. One of his hands stayed on the couch-balancing him-and the other came up to cradle my face. His hot breath tickled my cheek while I inhaled the light smell of my favorite cologne with a hint of the outdoors.

"Mm…," I murmured, intoxicated by his scent. As I felt him lean in closer, I readied myself. My eyes fluttered close just as he placed his soft, warm lips on mine. The kiss was a sweet one, not demanding yet passionate. I knew he was trying to limit himself, for he still thought that I was contagious.

He pulled away and I grinned foolishly. He smiled a rare, crooked smile that always left me breathless.

"What made you kiss me?"

"Well, you said that you weren't contagious anymore. Plus, I couldn't resist."

I grinned even wider; Fang positioned himself in a lounging position, one arm slung across my shoulders, and flicked on the T.V. I snuggled up to him, getting closer than I already was, and watched the silly Buffaloes play. I had no clue why Fang enjoyed watching others ram into each other-oh. Oh! That's why! People ramming into each other kinda reminded me of the good 'ol days. Anyway…off topic. During my inner spiel, I must have dozed off. But hey, if you're lying on a warm body, sick, wouldn't you fall asleep? Yeah, I thought so.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_WOO! Chappie one is done! Hehe...that rhymes._

_OK!_

_Now remember, it is four years in the future, so they may seem a little out of character. (Well, maybe not Nudge.)_

_So...If ya liked it, then you review, if you didn't, review! See? It works both ways! :)_

_May I please have five reviews? Please?_

_I'm begging. I DO NOT beg._


	2. Chapter 2

_Hey! Merry Christmas Eve! I'm gonna post the rest of the story today. (I hope) Well, except the Christmas chappie._

_It's eleven pages in word. Hope ya like it!_

_Ages: Max, Fang, Iggy, Arianna:17, Hazel, Gazzy: 12, Angel: 10, Nudge, Ella, Alex: 15, Ryan:16_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Maximum Ride...sadly_

_Christmas Wishes_

_Chapter 2: Shopping_

Unwanted light flooded into my room, instantly waking me from my peaceful slumber.

"Max? Wake up, we need you for something," a soft, musical voice asked.

"Mphgh," I mumbled into my pillow.

"Max! C'mon! Iggy's making your favorite breakfast." My eyes opened to a slant and I found out who was talking to me. Arianna. Her bright green eyes glinted and her strawberry-blond hair glistened in the soft morning light.

"Is this a trick to get me out of bed, or a true thing?" I asked sourly.

She looked pointedly at me. "Smell." It seemed ridiculous, but I did as she said. Sure enough, I could smell the pancakes, bacon, and eggs being cooked.

I sighed. "Okay. I'll meet you out there." Arianna hurried out of the room, probably to go and find Iggy, her boyfriend of two years.

I crawled out of my warm cocoon of blankets and fumbled toward the mahogany dresser. I pulled out some black skinny jeans, an _Avenged Sevenfold_ t-shirt, and combed through my wad of blond hair.

"MA-AX!" Arianna's voice called from the kitchen.

"Coming!" I called right back. I quickly brushed my teeth and trudged out of the room. On my way out, I glanced at my winged clock. _11:15. Hm…everyone must be having a late start this morning. _I walked into the big dining room, bleary eyed, and was greeted with a mass of food spread across the table.

Fang appeared behind me, wrapped his arms around me, stopping me in my tracks, and whispered, "Good morning sleepy head. I see you have your voice back."

I twisted around in his arms and grinned. I stood on my tip toes and planted a small kiss on him. After he freed me, he wrapped his arm around my waist, and started up a conversation.

"So…what about a date today?" he asked casually. Yes, we do go on dates. We _have _been dating for almost four years.

"Hm…today? I think I'm free," I teased.

"I'm glad to know that you're so busy."

I remembered something. "Crap."

"What?"

"We have to go and shop for Christmas presents today. Well, our little date's out of the question," I sighed, deflated.

"Can't we skip it?" he whined. We both still hated shopping.

"No. The girls will kill me if I skipped. Especially Arianna."

"Why Arianna?" We were sitting at the table, scooping various food onto our plates.

"She needs help shopping for Iggy."

"Why? He's just a partially-blind pyromaniac. What could be so hard?"

"Ha. That's the problem. She doesn't want to hurt his feelings by getting him a brail cookbook."

"A _cookbook_?"

"Yeah. Like he needs it." Arianna suddenly stomped into the room, bright red.

"Angel's such…such…," she sputtered. "a little _bitch_!"

My eyes widened and I'm pretty sure that my face puckered like a fish-I was so shocked.

"Arianna! What the hell was that for?" I screamed. I forgot our no swear policy. Oops.

"She…she…UGH!" she stammered, still mad.

"What did she do?" a calm voice asked by me. guess who? Bingo! Fang-always Mr. Calm.

"She told Iggy what I was going to get him-purposely- and now he's all pissed at saying, 'You think I need help cooking? Maybe you should get Max one! She's terrible at cooking!' I said, 'I just want you to find some new recipes. You know. Expand your cooking expertise.' Why does Angel always have to be a little bitch lately?!"

"Arianna!" my mom's voice yelled from the kitchen. "Please! Cut down on the swearing!"

_Angel. Get your butt in here._

_Ma-ax! She deserved it! She was being mean._

_Angel._ I warned in my head. I felt a small pressure in my head and words-no- commands flowed in.

"Arianna, go-" I cut myself off, yelling in my head.

_ANGEL! GET YOUR ASS IN HERE NOW!_

_Okay. _she squeaked. I heard small footfalls and she took her place next to Nudge, who-unfortunately- witnessed the whole scene. Angel's hair was matted with snow and-I just noticed- so was Arianna.

"Were you guys playing in the snow?"

Angel pouted. "Yes and Arianna threw snow at me! That's why I told Iggy! She was being mean! Then she called me a bitch!"

"Angel!" I warned. "When you're done eating, I need to speak with you and Arianna in my room."

"Okay!" Ella said, walking into the room with Ryan, Hazel, Gazzy, and Alex trailing behind her. They were all covered in snow. "Let's go through our plan for shopping."

"Ooh! Yes! Let's."

I interrupted Nudge. "Why? It's just shopping. It's easy."

"No. We need to figure out what groups we should go in." Crap. More shopping talk. "I was thinking that all of the older girls-me, Max, Nudge, and Arianna- go off and pick out stuff by ourselves."

"Ella," mom said uneasily. "I'm not too sure on that."

"Why not? Max and Arianna are seventeen. Max is almost eighteen."

"Okay. only if you're all on your best behavior," she relinquished.

"Good. Now, all of the older guys-Fang, Ryan, Alex, Iggy- go and do their own thing." Ella winked at Fang. She probably knew what he was getting me. "And all of the other kids- Angel, Hazel, Gaz- go with mom. How 'bout we leave around noon? Since we're all eating breakfast now, we can eat a late lunch. Sound good?"

"Yes," everyone echoed. We ate in silence, wolfing down our food, trying to get ready.

Once we were all done, everyone scurried off to take showers, get dressed, apply make-up, etc.

I turned to Fang. "Why did Ella wink at you?"

"She knows what I'm getting you. Why? Are you jealous?" he asked, smirking.

"No! I-I m-mean she has a boyfriend so-" I stammered, but was cut off by Fang's lips on mine. I kissed him back, eventually pulling away for air.

"I would never cheat on you. Plus, you were jealous," he whispered in my ear teasingly. I playfully slapped him.

"Nuh-uh. Nice try honey." I leapt off of my chair, sprinted to my room, and slammed the door before he could catch up to me.

"Shopping? Can I come?" Siberia asked from my bed.

"Siber, I don't think they allow dogs in there."

"Aw. But Total get's to go."

"No. Iggy doesn't need him anymore. Nor does he want to leave. Remember? Akila's pregnant with his puppies."

She sighed. "I guess. Hey, are you wearing that?"

I looked down at myself. My loose-fitting Avenged Sevenfold tee and my black skinny jeans seemed fine. "Yeah. Why?"

"Nudge and Arianna are going to be here in 3…2…1…"

They burst through the door, hair products in their hands.

I glared at my dog. "You traitor!"

She shrugged-well as much as a dog can. "They promised to give me all of their scraps for a week. Hey, I'm a dog!"

"Bathroom. Now," Arianna demanded. "Nudge, look through her closet for something to wear." Arianna pushed me into my large, jungle red bathroom, pushing me into my vanity chair. No, I didn't buy it. They did.

"Max, are going, like, Goth or something? Cuz there's only, like, black stuff and stuff from Hot Topic!" Nudge called from my mass of a closet.

"No."

Arianna rolled her eyes. "Nudge! Go and get my Abercrombie Alisha sweater, my Krista tank in blue, my Tristan destroyed boot jeans, and my Jimmy Choo Kathy pull-on suede boots!"

"Got it!"

"Why are you doing this?" I groaned.

"Where's your black liquid eyeliner."

"Top drawer." She rummaged through my drawer, me praying that she wouldn't find it, and she pulled it out with a triumphant look on her face.

"If you guys are going to make me over, then I get to drive."

"Fine. NUDGE!"

"Found them," she said, suddenly appearing in my bathroom door. Arianna pointed to me while laying all of the products on the onyx counter. I received the clothes and boots and was shoved into my closet to change.

I put on the outfit reluctantly, puzzled about how the boots went on. I walked out with the boots in hand, a vacuous look on my face. Arianna rolled her eyes.

"You zip them over the jeans." I cleared my head and zipped them up. "Good thing we're the same size," she muttered under her breath. I let it slide.

Nudge instructed me to sit. When I did, they attacked me. well, not literally, but it sure felt like it. Arianna plugged in the flat iron.

"Nudge, can you straighten her hair while I do her make-up?"

"Sure." She grabbed a weird looking comb, some spray, and the flat iron and started to straighten my hair. Arianna started to apply some eyeliner, eye shadow, mascara, lip gloss, etc. it took them around thirty minutes to fix me up. Those thirty minutes were Hell.

"Max. Now you may be shocked at our handy work, so you can thank us later. Keep your eyes closed." She led me somewhere and told me to open my eyes.

When I did, a stranger was in the mirror. Her hazel eyes didn't look bland, they looked vibrant and the color popped out at you. They were framed with thick, black eyeliner, soft, white eye shadow, and long, black lashes. Her normally unruly hair was pin straight and shiny. Her features were soft to the eye and all of her scars she collected over the years had vanished. Her lips were plump (not too plump) and they glistened a soft pink.

Her clothing complimented her frame, clinging to her curves. The heeled boots added on a few inches, making her look even taller than she is. She had a model-like quality. She was absolutely stunning.

"I-is that me?" I asked, hardly believing it.

"Nudge. Isn't she stunning? Fang's a lucky man."

"Mhm."

"MAX!" a familiar voice yelled. Fang. Crap.

"Hold on! ELLA! We need you in Max's bathroom!" Arianna called. Ella appeared.

"Oh. My. God. Is that Max?" she breathed.

"You guys did too much!"

"No! I love it! Fang's sooooo lucky. Anyway, it's time to go. What car are we taking?"

I grinned slyly. "We're taking the Maserati GranTurismo S."

Ella's and Nudge's face lit up.

"Are you sure?" Arianna asked, always the worrier. "What if we get in a crash?"

"We won't. Now, are we ready?" I asked, raising my eyebrows. Arianna was in a tank top and sweats-Abercrombie- and Nudge was still in her PJs.

"Umm…," Arianna said, examining herself. "Be right back." Arianna disappeared. So did Nudge.

She reappeared in some super skinny jeans, a half striped sweater, some tall boots,(**A/N: those are Uggs**.) and two purses. She threw a graffiti one at me and kept a white hobo one.

"Guess, Hollister, and Uggs. Always perfect. C'mon let's go. Nudge will meet us out in the car." We all filed out one by one, me hovering behind, still staring at myself. _How will I walk in these boots? _

"Max!" Arianna called from my doorway. I hurried out of my bathroom, figuring out that the boots were easy to walk in.

I heard the garage door open. Arianna. She had my keys. I strolled into the living room, only to find everyone sitting on the couches, staring at me, open-mouthed.

"I told you she looked stunning," Arianna bragged, a smug expression on her face. Angel must have sent a mental picture of me because Iggy's mouth dropped. Fang stared at me, unblinking, with his jaw ajar. Mom was shocked. She recovered, and she started to hustle everyone out the door. Me and Fang were still there, staring at each other. Heat rose to my face and I turned to go to the garage. His hand caught my wrist.

"Don't you think heels are a little out of season?"

"Ask Arianna. She knows all," I said, rolling my eyes.

"I like the new look. It suits you." Even more heat came to my face, if that was even possible.

"Thanks," I whispered. He leaned in and just as I closed my eyes, Ella appeared.

"Fang, Arianna wants Max."

I grinned. "I should go." I clicked softly down the hallway to the garage, and put on my Cardiff Hollister jacket.

I walked slowly to my car, inhaling the crisp, wintry air that surrounded me. I smelled faintly of Daisy by Marc Jacobs. Nudge. It did smell good though. I caught Gazzy and Hazel whining about the Honda CR-V they had to take. They wanted to take the sporty cars with the big kids. Mom didn't allow it. Arianna was sitting in the front seat, doing her hair and make-up. Her hair-tie was in her mouth.

I opened the car door and settled into the driver's seat.

"What car are the guys taking?"

"The Porsche Panamera. Gazzy's whining about it."

"Our car's better," I stated smugly. Ella wasn't here. "Where's Ella?"

"Inside."

"Oh." I honked the trident embroidered horn. Ella rushed out of the house, grinning wildly. She entered the car and buckled up. Arianna had put her naturally straight hair in a tight ponytail, showing off her cartilage piercing and hoop earrings. She was applying her eyeliner and mascara.

"Are you almost done?"

"I know how smooth this car drives. Floor it, I'll be fine." When I did, she kept on applying like we were not moving.

We arrived at the mall at 12:15. We shed our coats and left them in the car, knowing that we'd get too hot. We met everyone at the entrance, Mom giving us the rules.

"No exiting the mall without me. Do not exceed the four thousand dollar limit. Do NOT get in trouble with mall security. No shoplifting," she paused and looked pointedly at Arianna, who merely shrugged. Did I mention she was part cat? Guess not. "You must get at least one present per person. We will meet here at four. Does everyone have their cell phones?" We all nodded and pulled them out. "Good. I'll see you all here at four." With that, we all branched out, scoping out stores. Nudge saw something and she bounced up and down.

"Hey, you guys, I found the perfect store for Ryan's gift. Don't wait up. I'm gonna do other shopping, too. I'll meet you. Okay?"

"Yeah sure," I muttered. She was leaving me with Arianna and Ella. Great.

I spotted the jeweler that I was looking for, and started to head toward it. Ella grabbed my hood of my sweater and almost made me slip.

"Let's go there later. I found Abercrombie and Fitch!" she squealed and dragged me toward it. I was overpowered by the music and scent of the store.

Arianna eyed the cashier. I guess she was thinking that he was hot. Whatever.

"Hey, I'm going up to the checkout counter. I found something." I waved her off. I couldn't hear her because of the music. Ella dragged me over to the jeans. I picked up some very destroyed jeans called Tatum. I was thinking about getting them for Arianna. Then I looked at the price. $100. Oh wow. Arianna likes this stuff? Well, the clothes are very comfy. I slung them over my arm, and started to look for a shirt or sweater that could go with it.

"Hel-lo. May I help you?" a cute guy with blond, surfer dude hair, and was easy on the eyes asked.

"Hi. Um…I was looking for something to go with these." I held out the jeans.

"Well," he said, guiding me to a table. "we have our newest knit shirt called Micah. It would go very nicely with the jeans. I recommend the green." He handed me the shirt in a size XS. "Is this your size?" he asked, winking at me. Ugh. Guys.

"Not mine, my sister's. that girl up at the cash register," I told him, pointing to Arianna.

"This size would be hers. She comes here all of the time."

"Good. Thank you." I started to walk off, but he grabbed my wrist. An involuntary shudder ran down my spine.

"My name's Nick. What's yours?"

"Um… Max."

"Well, Max, why don't we go on a date sometime?"

EW! "Um…no thanks."

"Why not, babe?" he asked, breathing in my ear.

I gritted my teeth, trying to not beat him into next year. "Listen, punk," I said through clenched teeth, dropping my voice. "I can kick your ass to next year. I suggest you drop your hand."

"Who's gonna make me, doll face?"

That was the last straw. "Well, you asked for it." I spun around and punched him hard in the face. Blood gushed from his nose, broken.

"What the hell? You bitch!"

"You deserved it." I stalked off, paying for the items quickly, Arianna and Ella gaping at me.

I stormed out of A&F, Arianna and Ella following after me.

"Why'd you do that, Max?" Arianna asked.

"He deserved it. He tried to hit on me. Plus, he was getting on my nerves," I answered simply, my boots clicking softly on the tiled floor.

"Ugh! I can't take you anywhere. Max, you look frickin' awesome. Guys _are _going to hit on you," she scolded.

"Whatever. I have a boyfriend."

"You can just tell them that! You don't have to go and punch their lights out! At this rate, mall security is going to put you in mall jail! Trust me, it isn't pleasant."

"You would know," I muttered under my breath. You see, Arianna was a little troublemaker for the first couple years we had her. She's gotten arrested about three times. She was fun to be with.

"Um…let's go into Pac Sun. Okay?" Ella asked quietly.

"Fine," Arianna grumbled. When we entered, my phone dinged. I pulled out my orange Quickfire. **A/N: It's just like the Sidekick, 'cept it has a touch screen too. **Nudge texted me.

Where r u guys?

Pac Sun. U?

Aw, man. I just came from there. I'm in Hollister.

Of course. Meet u there.

Yes, I text. Yes, I'm addicted. Yes, it's fun. So what.

"Nudge is in Hollister. Are we done here?"

"No, Ella is getting something," Arianna said, pointing to the cash register at the back of the store. "Hey, Max?"

"Hm?"

"Do you know what Iggy wants? I mean he's been talking about him wanting to see me."

I stared at her, dumbfounded.

She blushed and smacked her palm on her forehead. "God! 'm such an idiot! Iggy wants to see. I'll talk to Jeb when he gets to our house." Jeb and my mom were married. He had to stay back in AZ for little for work. He promised that he'd come up today.

Ella came back with two big bags. "Max, you can and do your shopping. Me and Arianna will head over to Hollister. Okay?"

"Fine with me. I'll see you guys at four."

"Okay." I headed out of the store and almost ran to the jewelers.

"Hi. I have something on hold," I told the jeweler.

"Name?"

"Maximum Ride."

"Oh, yes. The special order," he said in a monotone voice. "Five minutes." He stalked to the back room. He returned with a leather box. "One onyx wings necklace with an onyx chain, inscription, 'Flying Forever Free,' in gold. Correct?"

"Yes."

"Okay then. Your total is $3,015. Cash or credit?"

"Cash." I rummaged through my purse and pulled out my suede wallet. I gave him the 3,015 dollars and he wrapped the box up for me.

"Thank you and have a nice day," he said boringly. I nodded and strolled out of the store.

I had only 875 dollars left, so I had to be frugal with my money. I got Nudge a Gucci purse (she had always wanted one); I got Hazel and Angel a Wii, with some Wii games. I got Gazzy Wanted: Weapons of Fate video game; Iggy got some Stephen King books and the Halloween series **(freaky movies! Love though!)**, Ella some Christian Louboutin shoes, Ryan got a dark blue laptop; I got Alex an iPod and an iTunes gift card. I got mom some Jimmy Choo shoes (she's been begging for some, she might be getting a lot for Christmas) and Jeb a new briefcase (hey, I still don't like him. But, it was _Italian _leather. Ha.).

I made it to the entrance with only three minutes to spare. I was the first one there. I put down my shopping bags (they were getting heavy) and waited. I twirled my keys around my finger, trying to be patient. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up. Fang.

"Those are an awful lot of bags."

I spun around and faced him. "How much money did you spend?" I didn't want to be the only one who spent over the limit.

"Around 5000." I sighed a sigh of relief.

"Good. 'Cause I spent about 6000."

He looked at me wide-eyed. "What'd you get?"

I smirked. "You're going to have to wait five days." He rolled his eyes. Everyone started to come back slowly and it was 4:30 when mom came with all of the little kids.

"Sorry I'm late, the kids wouldn't decide on gifts! Are you guys ready to go?"

We all chorused "Yes." Fang grabbed my bags (not like I wanted him to) and walked with me to the car. Arianna made a 'c'mon' motion with her hand.

"Are you sure those aren't too heavy?"

"I had to carry a fat dog across the country to Arizona. These aren't anything compared to that." He was talking about Akila. She was fat.

He loaded the bags in the trunk and gave me a quick kiss.

"I'll see you at home. It couldn't get any crazier than shopping with them," he said, motioning to the guys. Oh how wrong we were.

_Yay! It's done! It took me forever. So sorry. _

_If ya liked it, review, if ya didn't, review!_

_Flames welcome._

_If I don't post the rest today, then I am at my Christmas party. So sorry._

_**Remember, it is 4 years in the future. Maybe OOC._


	3. Chapters 3 and 4

_So sorry that I didn't update earlier!! I've been super busy with Drama and Italy meets, and High School Orientation_

_I probably won't update as long as this-but I most likely won't be around for a while._

_I'm applying for Honors-and I need to write two essays. I'm totally stressed out about that, so I'm a wreck. _

_I'm trying out for a play in school, so I'll be having auditions and practices. Plus, I'm going to High School this fall._

_I have to pick my classes, which is uber hard. I have a tough time deciding. _

_Anywhoo, I wrote this on Saturday-and I stayed up really late. _

_This is a joint chapter, so it's complete now. :) I will get to updating my other story, Max Ride: Saving the World Again._

_I will have pictures posted in my prof. of the items they got for Christmas. The last chappie is really long-cuz i needed to jam a lot of stuff in it. _

_Let's just say, the last chapter is my favorite. C ya at the bottom!_

_Disclaimer: Am I a deranged psycho-who thinks that she's JP? No. I'm exceeding in my classes, and I am NOT a psycho. Otherwise, I would own Max Ride and her crew._

_Christmas Wishes_

_Chapter 3: Decorations, Wrapping, and a Snowball Fight?_

It was absolute craziness the next four days. We still had so much to do, with it being Christmas Eve. I had no idea how we were going to make the deadline.

"Max. Hello? Anyone in there?" Arianna asked, waving her hand over my face.

"Huh, what? I zoned out didn't I?"

"Duh. We're going to find a Christmas tree. Wanna come?"

"Yeah, sure." I noticed that everyone had on their jackets, even Fang.

"Well, then, I suggest you hurry. Dr. M is leaving."

I hurried to get my coat on. I hadn't gone back to normal. Arianna wouldn't let me. So, I was wearing a 'Lillian' Abercrombie tank-top under my favorite black leather jacket, white super skinny jeans, and Arianna's Ugg boots. My hair was flat again, but this time, I had a black beanie on my head. My make-up was the same, but with no eye shadow. This was more me.

I grabbed my jacket and climbed in the bed next to Fang. We were taking the truck. So ya know the bed of the truck. Everyone was here, except Ella and Alex.

"They're at the Christmas store, buying decorations and wrapping paper," Angel told me. she was sitting in my lap because she was cold. Iggy forgave Arianna and now she was snuggled up to him, his arm wrapped tightly around her. God, I wish that Fang would do that to me. But, sadly to say, he isn't into PDA.

_Don't worry, Max. Fang loves you so much-and you know it. _

I know, Angel. Now can you please get out of my head?

She smiled up at me and I felt her presence leave my mind. Creepy, huh? But, hey. When you've lived with a mind reader for all of your life, you start to notice. Angel was starting to become a trouble maker (oh, joy), just like Arianna. She rubs off on all of us (yes, I've shoplifted. I didn't get caught, though.).

I felt the warmth of Fang radiate off of him, making me go crazy. I was cold. He wasn't. Do the math. I looked at him, his face impassive, scanning the breath of winter on the trees and ground. God, did I love him. He turned and smiled, with Angel noticing of course.

_Don't worry. I need to stop Haze and Gaz from making out. _

I cocked my head at the sentence, looked over to where Hazel and Gazzy were sitting, and noticed exactly what Angel meant. They were very close together, their hands interlocked, whispering nothings in each other's ears. Haze's sharp, fiery features were turned up in a gleeful expression; her winter-clad body made her look pretty, and her red hair was shiny in the sun. You see, Hazel is part avian, part cat (she and Arianna are blood siblings), and part fox. Yet, her powers are sort of like Gazzy's-she can create fog, confusion, and force fields. With Gazzy's power and hers combined, you don't want to know.

They sprang apart when Angel came over, and then started an animated conversation. I caught the longing glances they threw each other- Fang and I would have to talk to them later.

I was jerked back to the present by a very warm hand waving over my face. Oh-and about the white pants. I was sitting on Fang's jacket. I have no idea how he isn't cold. Anywhoo-waaaaay off topic.

"Hm?" I asked, turning my face to Fang's. He was smirking and his eyes were soft. They got that way whenever he saw me. Go ahead-say 'Awwww!' Yes, I love it when his eyes do that.

"You're cold," he stated a matter-of-factly.

"Yeah. And?"

He did something totally un-Fanglike. He wrapped me in his arms, scooted me closer to him, and just held me. He never holds me in front of people. NEVER.

_You're welcome. _I wanted to be mad, but I just couldn't. Fang was HOLDING me. Yeah, yeah. It may not be a big deal-but it really IS. Whatever, I'll drop it.

I was instantly warm-and I made the horrible mistake of looking up into his endless eyes-we locked eyes immediately-the world just falling away with only us still in it. We stared for what felt like hours-when it was only minutes. I was brought back by Arianna clearing her throat.

"You know, some of us CAN see. So, you can make-out when you're alone. I'm not sure that all of us want to see that," Arianna teased, smirking in the process. She was perfect for Iggy. It was hard to believe that he found her. Just to let you know, Nudge didn't pipe up because she was in the front of the car with Ryan and mom.

I buried my face into Fang's side, flushing deeply with embarrassment. I stayed there until we stopped moving completely. I slowly eased my way out of my warm cocoon of Fang, not that I wanted to, and tucked my wings in even further. I hopped out of the truck, falling into step with Arianna. She IS my best friend, even though she is horrible sometimes.

We were at Al's Tree Emporium-which was all outside.

"Okay! We need a big tree, so that it'll fill the giant ceiling of the family room. Report to mom when you found one," I ordered everyone, still assuming the Leader role. I can't help it. I'm still in our 'on the run' lifestyle even though it's been four years and I'm a lot more relaxed.

"You know, I was just kidding back it the truck," Arianna told me.

I nodded. "Yeah, I know. But, you're 'humor' can get to someone."

She rolled her eyes. "That's how I lived back in the…Institution." We were still wary about saying the School or Institution. We can't help it.

"Yeah…."

"Don't slip on ice. You're underwear might show through." I could tell that Arianna was trying to bite back a crude joke. She succeeded. That was until something cold hit my butt, full force.

Arianna exploded with laughter, my semi-white underwear showing through. I spun around on my boot and death glared at the culprit. Fang was doubled over with laughter, his fingers dripping water. He was _sooo _going to get it.

I scooped up the frigid snow, made it into a hard ball, and chucked it at him-harder than the one he threw at me. It hit him square on the head, soaking his longish hair. He stopped laughing immediately, and scooped up more snow.

"Oh (insert swear word of your choice here)." Arianna had stopped laughing now, her face frozen in anger. Her ears flicked, turning into cat ears, her eyes went to cat mode, her orange and black striped tail flicked behind her. When she's like that, you better run. Just sayin'.

"Whoever just did that better run like hell," she growled. I saw Nudges' face go sheer white, and started running like mad.

I had almost forgotten about my dilemma. I saw that Fangs' arm was thrown back, about to throw it at me. I ran and dove into the trees in the next row. I gathered a supply of snowballs, preparing myself for Fangs imminent attack. I heard Nudge yell "SNOWBALL FIGHT!", then the splatter of snow against bodies.

I heard someone come into my sanctuary from the snow, breathing heavily. I turned and aimed a snowball at the intruder. Fang held up his hands, signaling that he came in peace. He was dripping with snow. He had gotten hit plenty of times.

"Truce. I need help. Iggy's snowballs hurt, so I think that they have ice in them. Arianna has teamed up with Nudge, Angel and Hazel are a team, Ryan's on his own, and so are Gazzy and Iggy. That leaves us."

"Fine. But how to we take out Iggy's supplies?"

He smiled slyly. "We take out Gazzy of course. He's the one making them. So, you fly above with a huge snowball, drop it on him, and he'll be out of commission. Then, I'll take out Iggy. Angel will give in to you, Ryan is aligned with Nudge, so he's out on his own, and Hazel…well, let's just hope that she'll give into Gaz."

I nodded. "Sounds like a plan. Now, where's our huge snowball?"

He smirked. "Right here." He pulled out a MASSIVE snowball from behind him and handed it to me.

"How'd you get this?"

"Arianna. She got pelted with Ig's snow too. She's pissed at him. We have a truce with them. They're out on the field right now."

"Let's do this." I extended my wings and jumped out of my fortress, into the blinding sun. Fang gave me the heads up, and our plan went into action.

It went smoothly, just as we had hoped. But then mom came out of nowhere, and started to examine our damage with silent rage. At the moment, me and Fang had Hazel trapped, holding her arms behind her back, with Hazel struggling. Everyone was soaked and shivering, lips blue.

"Uh…we can explain," I told her, releasing Hazel.

"You better," she rumbled.

"I hit Max with snow, and then she hit me back. Nudge hit Arianna, and Arianna got pissed off. Nudge yelled 'Snowball Fight', and it all went downhill from there," Fang explained.

"Oh. So I should be yelling at you?"

He nodded.

"Well. I found a tree. You guys are so lucky that it's Christmas Eve. If it wasn't, then you all would be in MASSIVE trouble. Just don't ever to that again," she scolded us, resting her head in her palm. "I would like you guys to fly home. Then, get straight to work on presents and decorations."

We all nodded obediently, jumping up into the air, wings unfurled.

.-*-. .-*-. .-*-.

We got the tree up and decorations on it in no time. We were all being well-behaved, since we didn't want to anger mom any more. We were wrapping presents when Jeb came through the door.

"Wow. It took me forever to get a flight here. How are you guys?"

"Great," Arianna told him. "Now Jeb, I need to talk to about something." She stopped wrapping, grabbed Jeb's arm, and led him into the office.

"What was that all about? Arianna hates Jeb. Like you," Fang asked in my ear.

"She has to ask him something."

"What is it?" I whispered it in his ear and he pulled away smiling.

"Are you serious?"

"As serious as I'll ever be."

"Wow."

"Yeah. It came to her when we were shopping. Plus, he'd be ready by late afternoon tomorrow."

"Wow. This is awesome."

I nodded. I was almost done wrapping, and I just wanted to change my wet clothes, when Arianna came into the family room, grinning ear to ear.

"Iggy," she told him, grabbing his arm; "I'm going to give you your Christmas gift early. You just have to follow me and TRUST me that I'm not going to do anything to hurt you."

"Okay?" he answered nervously. They disappeared into the office, the windows going black.

.-*-. .-*-. .-*-.

I was done wrapping by ten. I was wiped out from today's activities-having a snowball fight really tires you out. I walked wearily into my room; my eyes half-way closed, and grabbed my black sweatpants and Fang's Buffaloes t-shirt. I stumbled to my bathroom, got dressed, and barely brushed my teeth. I felt two arms snake around my waist, and I turned around to face Fang.

"So that's where my t-shirt went."

"Yeah," I murmured. It was my favorite shirt to wear to bed. I laid my head on his chest and closed my eyes. I felt him move his arms to carry me, bridal style, to my bed. He gently set me down and tucked my covers over me. He was almost to the door when I called him.

"What?"

"Come 'ere." I heard his footsteps pad over to me, his body hovering over me.

"Hm?" I tugged on his arm, signaling that I wanted him to sleep in here tonight. He crawled into the queen-sized bed and I cuddled up to his warmth.

"I 'ove you," I murmured, sleep clouding my mind. His arms wrapped around me.

"I love you too. Goodnight."

"G'night," I mumbled. The last thing I felt was a soft kiss on my head before I sank into oblivion.

_Third chappie done. Relativlely a short chappie._

_Continue on, fellow fanfictioneers!_

_I'm down at the bottom!_

_Christmas Wishes_

_Chapter 4: MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!_

I woke to someone jumping on my bed. It was NOT pleasant, since I did NOT want to leave my warm Fang. I wasn't going to move. No way. No chance in HELL.

"MAX! FANG!!! Wake UP!" Angel yelled in our ears. I bolted upward, Fang being discombobulated **(A/N heh. I LOVE that word!!!)**, due to disappearance of _moi. _

"Wha?" he mumbled, rubbing his eyes.

"Yes, Angel. What?"

She rolled her eyes. "It's Christmas, silly!"

I moaned and fell back into bed. "Great."

"Angel, we'll be out in a minute."

She smiled. "Okay!"

Fang shook my shoulder. "Max, the kids want to open their gifts. Don't ruin their fun."

I sighed. "Okay. Fine. Just give me a minute. I-we need to brush our teeth before I go get coffee." I crawled, unwillingly, out of my bed, Fang following, and went to the bathroom.

My hair was a rat's nest, and my make-up was smudged. I hunted for my make-up remover while Fang brushed his teeth, staring at me with an amused expression.

"What?"

He spit and wrapped me in his arms. "It suits you," he murmured into my hair. I rolled my eyes and pried his hands from my waist, UNWILLINGLY.

"Great. Nice try, Romeo. It isn't working."

"Aw, man," he mock-pouted.

I decided to torture him even more. "You aren't getting a kiss out of moi until she's had some coffee."

"Great," he muttered. That seemed to be our favorite word this morning. I found it and used it _slowly. _Fang almost ripped the make-up remover out of my hand. I hurried it up a _tiny _bit. I took _forever _to brush my teeth. He was glaring daggers at me before I even put away my toothbrush.

"What? I have to make sure that I brushed well."

"More like brush every single tooth one at a time," he muttered under his breath.

"So? I still need coffee. You're gonna have to wait." But before I could even exit the bathroom, he grabbed my arm, spun me towards him, and kissed me. I kissed him back unintentionally, but I placed my hands on his chest, and gently shoved him away.

"Took you long enough." He stared at me, open-mouthed, while I just smiled. I walked to the kitchen, the smell of fresh brewed vanilla coffee leading the way. I took out my favorite mug-it said 'Fang' on it-and poured my coffee. I sipped it, letting out a satisfying moan.

"Good?" Fang asked from behind me.

"Mhm…." The next thing I knew, I was being pulled toward the family room, with everyone staring at their presents with longing.

"Someone's excited." Fang's eyes were alit with eagerness, like a little kid. It made him soooo cute. Nudge was almost bouncing out of her seat, but Ryan was holding her down. Iggy had bandages over his eyes, with Arianna cooing something to him. Mom and Jeb looked tired, and Ella and Alex were handing out the presents. We didn't have time to do stockings.

"Nice of you to join us," Arianna said.

"Yeah. _Now _can we open up presents, Mom?" Angel asked. She only nodded her head.

The room was flooded with _oohs and_ _ahs_ as they tore open the presents.

"Oh my god!!!!!! Max! Thank you sooooooooooooooo much! I love it!" Nudge yelled over the ruckus. I smiled and nodded. I got bombarded with hugs from Angel and Hazel, a chorus of 'thank you's' filling my ears.

"Okay, okay. You're welcome." I handed Fang his present, smiling slightly. He opened it and grinned crookedly at me.

"Thank you," he whispered. "I love it." I smiled back, wondering where my Christmas present is. He must have sensed my confusion because he whispered something in my ear. "Don't worry. I have it. I'm going to give it to you later." I nodded.

"Max! You HAVE to open my gift next," Arianna yelled at me, tossing three boxes to me. I tore open the wrapping of the first box-finding 'Monica' boot cut jeans from Guess and a Glamour v-neck shirt in black, also from Guess. Typical of her to go name-brand. I set those aside, opening the second box. Right when I peeled away all of the wrappers, I knew that I was in trouble. The sleek, black box said 'Jimmy Choo' on the front. I groaned internally and opened the box, only to find the 'Ginger' high heels, which were EXTREMELY high.

"Ari-how do you expect me to walk in these?"

She rolled her eyes. "Did you notice that the other ones were easy to walk in?"

"Yes, but these are so much higher!" I whined.

"We'll talk later. Now, open the last box. You'll love it." I took in a deep breath, readied myself for the horror of the smaller box, and opened it. Inside was a Jared® Journey® curved necklace with blue topaz-my birthstone-imbedded in the surface. It was beautiful. Now, I DO have limitations to jewelry-nothing too fancy-nothing too gaudy. This-this I could make an exception to.

"Thank you, Ari." She grinned happily-overjoyed that what she had gotten me had made my approval.

.-*-. .-*-. .-*-.

Christmas was over within a few hours. Ryan was fiddling with his new computer-getting Nudge to help him with it when he got frustrated. Alex disappeared-he was downloading new songs onto his new iPod. Nudge was rambling about the quality of the Gucci purse that I had gotten her. It was getting VERY annoying. Mom was engulfed in shoes-in which she absolutely loved. Jeb, Iggy, and Arianna had disappeared-most likely to take off the bandages off his eyes-and adjusting them to the new light. Hazel and Angel were playing with their new Wii®- making their own Mii. Gazzy was playing the video game I had gotten him on his new PSP®-Iggy had gotten it for him. Ella was out trying out her new car that Jeb had gotten her-it was a Porsche Cayenne Turbo-in silver. I was currently curled up next to Fang-wondering about what he had gotten me.

_Hazel and Gazzy are going out. _Angel said-popping into my mind suddenly-almost making me jump six feet in the air.

Great. Did you read their minds? And when?

_Well, not now-Gazzy's mind is infatuated with that game you got him-he's all like 'DIE BASTARDS DIE!!!!' Hazel is sooooo focused on Tomb Raider: Underworld. It's really fun, Max. It helps you get out anger. I read their minds last night._

Huh. Okay. Well, I'll talk to them tomorrow. Do you know anything about what Fang got me?

_Well, duh. But I'm not saying a word. It's waaaay too good._

Fine. Do you want dinner?

_No-Fang will get it. Arianna wants you to go to your bathroom-and she wants you to bring your new outfit that she got you-all of it. _

Okay.

I started to get up-but Fang restrained me.

"Where are you going?"

I looked longingly at my spot on his chest-wishing that I didn't have to move. "I have to go to my bathroom. Arianna wants me to."

"Oh. Well, then go on." He gently pushed me out of the family room and out into the hallway. I scurried to the bathroom-outfit in hand-and noticed a note on the counter in her neat script.

_Max-_

_Take a shower. And when you're done, BLOWDRY your hair. When you're done with that, put on your make-up. I'll be in there in an hour to do your hair. I trust you to apply the make-up the way that I've been doing for the past few days. DO NOT change your outfit. I'll explain later. Just do it. Please._

_~Arianna_

I did what she told me-although I took a too long of a shower. I couldn't help it-it felt too good. But when I did get out, I only had ten minutes to get ready. I had to make sure that my hair was COMPLETELY dry-so that took around five-ten minutes. Arianna was just walking in when I found the eyeliner and started to put it on.

"You took a long shower, didn't you?"

I nodded sheepishly. She groaned and pulled out all of the items needed to do my hair.

"Just put on your make-up when I do your hair." She left it at that and pulled out a curling iron.

Bewildered, I asked, "Aren't you going to straighten my hair?"

"Nope," she told me, popping on the 'p'. "Straight hair is for normal occasions." When those words came out of her mouth, her eyes widened. "Aw shit, man."

"What?"

"I said too much. FANG!!!!!" she yelled.

I heard a muffled 'what?' from next door and knew it was Fang. What was he doing in Ryan's room?

"I SAID TOO MUCH! WHAT DO I DO?"

I heard him sigh. "Just tell her!" he yelled back.

"Okay. Fang is going to take you out on a well overdue date," she confessed, returning to my hair.

"Okay? So? What's so special about THIS particular date?"

"It's a SPECIAL date, Max. That's all I'm going to tell you. He's going to give you your Christmas present."

"A date?" I asked incredulously.

"Max-of course not! It's leading up to your Christmas present. Duh. He would NEVER do that! Give him some credit. He's worked up a lot of nerve to do this." **(A/N Can anyone guess what it is? If so-review right now!!! Do NOT read any further…yet) **

"Oh," I squeaked-returning to my make-up. _Arianna's right. I should give him some credit. Fang would never do that. Never. He thinks too much about it. I'm sure it took him forever to decide. Right?_

"Well, since I'm done with your hair-do NOT look-I'll finish your make-up. I have a deadline here." It took her less than a minute to finish doing my make-up. "Okay-now look in the mirror. Full length."

I walked; my heels were surprisingly easy to walk in, my heels clicking on the floor. In my mirror, I saw me. I mean REALLY saw who I was. I was pretty-maybe even beautiful. My shirt hugged my curves-accenting my flat stomach. My low-rise, straight leg jeans made me look sophisticated. The heels added height that I didn't need-but I guess I needed it to reach Fang-who was taller by me by 7 inches. My hair was in a side ponytail, my curls flowing from it-a small black ribbon wrapping around the ponytail holder. My eyes stood out against the eyeliner, accented with long, thick lashes, and silvery eye shadow. My lips were shiny with a light red glossy lipstick. I turned to Arianna-who was examining her nails. Did I mention that she gave me a French manicure? Guess not.

"When's your deadline?" I asked her suddenly.

She didn't even glance up at me. But she did glance up at the clock. "Shit," she muttered. "Twenty minutes ago. FANG!!! DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT COMING IN HERE!"

I heard the halt of footsteps from outside of my closed bathroom door.

"Now-get to the garage and start up the Maserati. Do you have the…'important thing'?" She looked nervously at the door-for she almost slipped the secret.

"Yeah."

"Okay. NOW GO!" she ordered. I heard his footsteps retreating to the garage.

"Why can't he see me?"

"'Cause I like to torture him," she told me-grinning evilly.

I sighed. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

"Yeah-but I need to go check on Ig. Jeb should be almost finished. I want to be the first thing he sees. Go to your _boyfriend_," she said, emphasizing on 'boyfriend'. Huh. I wonder why. Before I could ask her, she left the room. I sighed and walked to the garage-which was giving off a low hum. The car must be warming up.

I put on my coat and walked out to the open garage. I climbed in-taking in the scent of…cologne? Gee…it smelled sooooooo good. It actually smelled like Tommy Hilfiger. **(A/N: I love that smell!) **

"Someone smells good." Fang turned and smirked.

"Ryan made me," was all he said. He revved the humming engine-and it gave a satisfying purr. God, I love my car. Yeah-you heard me. MY car. Got it for my 16th birthday from Mom and Jeb. Meh. Even though Jeb is an asshole-he's an asshole with good taste and money. I flicked on the radio-and was greeted with the sound of 1,2,3,4 by The Plain White Tees. I loved this song. The sweet music filled the car-turning it into a comfortable silence between me and Fang.

_1 2… 1 2 3 4  
Give me more lovin' than I've ever had,  
Make it all better when I'm feelin' sad,  
Tell me that I'm special even when I know I'm not,  
Make it feel good when I hurt so bad, Barely gettin' mad,  
I'm so glad I found you; I love bein' around you._

_You make it easy, it's easy as 1, 2… 1, 2, 3, 4  
There's only 1 thing 2 do 3 words 4 you- (I love you) I love you  
There's only 1 way 2 say those 3 words and that's what I'll do (I love you)  
I love you._

_Give me more lovin' from the very start,  
Piece me back together when I fall apart,  
Tell me things you never even tell your closest friends  
Make it feel good when I hurt so bad, Best that I've had,  
I'm so glad I found you, I love bein' around you_

_You make it easy, it's easy as 1, 2… 1, 2, 3, 4  
There's only 1 thing 2 do 3 words 4 you- (I love you) I love you  
There's only 1 way 2 say those 3 words and that's what I'll do (I love you)  
I love you  
(I love you) I love you_

_You make it easy, it's easy as 1, 2… 1, 2, 3, 4  
There's only 1 thing 2 do 3 words 4 you (I love you) I love you  
There's only 1 way 2 say those 3 words and that's what I'll do (I love you)  
I love you_

I really DID love him. More than anything. Cheesy-I know. But it's so true. That's why I love this song. It relates to us perfectly. We were in downtown now, being greeted by the mass of lights. I glanced at the digital clock. 6:15.

"Fang."

"Hm?" he asked without looking up from the car windshield.

"I love you," I told him, gaining his attention. He smiled.

"I love you too. What made you say that?" He turned his gaze back to the road.

"The song."

He laughed quietly. "So you say 'I love you' all because of a song?"

"Huh. Nope. I WANTED to say it."

"Okay," he agreed, left it at that, and took my hand in his. I smiled slightly at the gesture. My rushing thoughts consumed me.

_Arianna POV:_

I was holding Iggy's hand-him squeezing it whenever the pain was too much. I was ecstatic-he would be able to finally see me…and the Flock.

"Jeb are you sure that this'll work?"

"I'm positive. What do think I'm working as? A lab technician?"

"Uh, yeah." God, I hated this man so much.

"No, Arianna. I'm working as an eye doctor. I fix blindness."

"Oh." The lights were up fully now-with Iggy almost breaking my hand.

"Ig, can you see me?" I asked cautiously. His blue eyes focused on me. His grip loosened, placing a hand on my cheek.

"Did I ever tell you how beautiful you are?" he asked, joy etched in his voice. He could SEE! This was the happiest day of my life.

_Iggy POV:_

Arianna-my girlfriend-was absolutely beautiful. She had strawberry blond hair-like me, the greenest eyes, a devious smile, perfect, white teeth-only with a subtle sharp edge on the canines, soft, delicate features, and gentle-yet strong-hands that were very smooth. I couldn't help but wonder what Max looked like.

"Ig, can you see me?" she asked cautiously. I loosened my grip on her hand and placed it on her cheek.

"Did I ever tell you how beautiful you are?" I asked, joy etching my voice. Pure bliss was placed on her features, creating a whole different girl. She hugged me hard, with me holding her just as tightly. I heard the door click-Jeb was leaving the room to us.

"Oh, Iggy. You can see me," she murmured.

I took in a deep breath, and told her the three words I had never said to anyone.

"I love you, Arianna." She pulled away, tears in her cat-like eyes. One fell over, making a small streak down her face.

"I love you too, Iggy," she whispered, finally making this the best day of my life do far.

_Max POV:_

"Max. We're here," Fang said on the other side of me, holding my door open for me. He was dressed nicely-a black button-down shirt, dark blue jeans, and some nice black dress shoes. He had his hand out-I grabbed it, placing one high heeled clad shoe outside of the car. He helped me out-I found out that getting out of a low car like that was hard in my new heels-and tossed the keys to the valet parking person (VPP for short. I know, so creative.).

We walked in-there was a red carpet (go figure)-and Fang stepped up to the podium-which held a red haired woman. I hated her already.

"Hello? How may I help you? We only take reservations. So if you don't have one, please leave." she told Fang without looking up from her reservation book.

"I have a reservation for two."

"Name?" She still wasn't looking up. I was beginning to like this woman. I read her nametag. _Carli Nightshadow. Manager. _

"Nick Ride," he told her, giving her his fake name. Hey, we didn't want attention to be drawn to us.

"Ah, yes. Nick Ride. Follow me please," she said, grabbing menus. Fang grabbed my hand and lead me toward Carli.

"Max, this is Carli. Carli, this is Max."

She smiled. "Ah, I've heard a lot about you, Max." I threw a questioning look at him.

"Oh! Beg my pardon. I'm 'Nick's' business associate." My eyes bugged out.

"Business associate?"

"Here's your table. Yes, you heard correctly. I'll let Fang explain," she said, placing the menus down, and returned to her podium.

"1. How does she know your real name? And 2. What the _hell _does she mean by 'business associate'?"

"Max. Calm down. Carli was one of the mutants we let free in NY. I've kept in touch with her over the years."

I interrupted. "And you didn't tell me this, why? She could have feelings for you!"

"Max. Again-calm down. She's my sister and Carli is married. In fact, her husband-Jake-is here, serving tables."

"Oh."

"Like I said. Carli and I have kept in touch over the past few years-and I found out that she's highly intelligent-and she has a specialty at running businesses. Especially restaurants. So, I needed some money, and so did she, so we opened this restaurant."

"Wow. So-last year when we had our big fight that almost caused us to break up-you weren't sneaking around? You were managing the restaurant? But where was Carli?"

"Carli was taking care of her daughter-Ally-my niece. Ally was really sick-she had cancer. Carli couldn't handle the stress of being manager at that time, so I took over."

"Did Ally survive?" I felt bad for Carli.

"Yeah-but barely. She has our mutant genes, Max." We were interrupted by a blond bimbo named Stella.

"Hi! I'm Stella and I'll be your server for tonight. Have you decided on what you want for dinner?" She winked at Fang. I cleared my throat, showing that I was still here. She flushed, and took out her serving pad.

"Fa-ang! You didn't tell me you brought your _girlfriend,_" she whined.

I glared at him.

"Stella, not now. Please. If you don't, Max-"

Her eyes bugged. "Okay. Uh…."

"I'd like the Caesar salad, and a 12oz. prime rib-well done, with water," I told the bimbo. My fists clenched under the table.

"The Turkish salad and a steak-medium well- with some water."

"Okay. I'll be right back." When she was gone, I turned to Fang.

"Who was that blonde bimbo?"

"That was Stella, the national flirt of the restaurant. She flirts with everyone. But, she's a good entertainer. She's actually nice."

"Nice. Psh." A small nine-year old with red curls ran toward our booth, an overjoyed look on her face.

"FANG!!!!!" she cried, jumping into his lap.

"Hi Ally." She grinned at me, looking adorable. My heart leapt.

"Hi!! You're Max, right?"

"Yeah. And you're Ally. Carli's little girl."

She nodded furiously. "Yep! That's me! Fang's told me EVERYTHING about you! You saved the world! You are, like, my HERO!"

A nervous look crossed my face.

"Don't worry, Max. It's a restaurant that only serves hybrids like us."

"Thanks Ally." She surprised me; she climbed onto the table and sat on it, facing me.

"No problem! I love hearing about all of your adventures. But my FAVORITE is the one where you and the Flock destroyed Itex!"

"God, Fang. She's like a little Nudge," I joked. She knew who Nudge was-and she wasn't offended-she just beamed at me. Our food arrived in heaping platters. The salads were in HUGE bowls-and the main course was tinier. I started to eat.

"Mommy told me to tell you that Stella is REALLY nice. There's proof for you," she said, pointing across the restaurant. There was Stella, entertaining a couple-who were laughing along with her.

"That's Jerry and Amanda. They're regulars here. You get used to Stella, I didn't like her either 'cause she flirted with my Daddy. But then she stopped. I guess it's her way of entertaining our guests. Mommy, Uncle Fang, and Stella are really good friends. You'd like her. But, I guess you have to look past her flirtatious persona. She's engaged."

"Really?"

"Yeah. You see that dude with the shaggy hair? That's Micah-her fiancée. And someone in this room is going to be-"

"Okay! Ally, I think you said enough," Fang said suddenly, clapping his hand on Ally's mouth. She smiled angelically-the way Angel does whenever she said a bit too much.

"Uh-I can take your salad plates," she said, hopping off of the table. I had finished eating almost all of my prime rib-which was extremely good.

"Stella will be over with your check soon. Oh and Max?"

"Yeah, Ally?"

"I can't wait until you're my auntie." Before Fang could yell at her, she ran off, smiling, with the plates in hand.

"What does she mean by 'auntie'?"

"She's just excited that I have such an awesome girlfriend. Ally approves," he explained, smiling at the end.

"Well, I'm glad that your niece approves."

"Fang, Carli said that dinner's on the house."

"Can we afford it?" he asked worriedly.

"Fang-look around. Business is booming. Of course we can afford it." I looked at her nametag. _Stella Worrs Assistant Manager. _

"Oh and Max? Sorry about earlier. I was just joking. I've heard a ton of stuff from Fang. You sound like an awesome girl. I hope we can become friends? Maybe hang out sometime?" Stella was actually nice. She was pretty too. She had naturally curly blond hair, blue eyes, and features that showed playfulness.

I smiled. I was actually starting to like her. "Yeah. We'll come back. Definitely. It's Fang and Carli's restaurant."

"Cool. I can't wait until you give her her present. I have a feeling that you guys will be back soon. Max? We have an adults night on Fridays. We drink and stuff. Carli supplies it. She's 21. It's always a riot. Fang is HILARIOUS! You should come sometime. ANYWHOO, I should kick you guys out. Fang-it's Carli's orders. You need to do you know what."

"Right. See you later, Stell. C'mon Max." He grabbed my hand, waved goodbye to Carli and Ally, and took me outside.

"Where are we going now?"

He got a strange glint in his eyes. "You'll see," he said, then picked me up-bridal style-and jumped into the air, wings extended.

"FANG!!! Put me down!!"

"Nope," he said, popping on the 'p'. I buried my face into his chest, inhaling the wonderful scent of him.

"What about the Maserati?"

"Carli has it handled. Let's just say that the Flock is going to meet my sister and my niece. I have a feeling that Angel, Nudge, and Arianna are going to hit it off with Ally. She's so much like them-it's scary."

"Oh god." We talked about nothing for about thirty minutes-I almost fell asleep. I think I did when Fang jerked me awake. Oh, how embarrassing. On our date too.

"Wake up, sleepy head. We're here." I rubbed my eyes while Fang put me down, taking in my surroundings. The moon and stars were out, the stars twinkling against the jet black sky.

"Follow me," he said, grabbing my hand. We were on an island-which was beautiful. The grass was completely green, blending into the obsidian sand. The moon hit the water at a perfect angle, it reflected off of it gracefully. The water was jet black-extremely calm-like a mirror. A storm was coming.

"Max, look," he told me, pointing up into the sky. A shooting star. "Make a wish," he whispered in my ear, sending shivers up my spine.

_I wish that Fang would propose to me. _When I made my wish, the shooting star vanished.

"Come here." I followed him to a small inlet, the water making a soothing trickling sound.

"It's beautiful," I breathed. You could see the whole island from the bay, which was breathtaking.

"It is. But it can't even compete with the person standing next to me," he murmured. I was looking away-taking in the scenery-so I didn't even notice what he was doing. "Max, look around you." I did so, and noticed rose petals all around the bay-the pink stood out on the black sand, looking gorgeous.

"Aw, Fang." Tears caught in my throat. It was so romantic. When I was done looking at the cliff, I turned to him, and almost cried right there.

There was Fang, looking incredibly handsome in the moonlight, kneeling on one knee, holding a small velvet box that was open. Inside was the most beautiful ring. It was silver, with three small diamonds in the middle, two smaller ones on each side. The diamonds caught the moonlight perfectly, sending an array of colors through the night. My breathing hitched. _Is he doing what I think he's doing? _

"Maximum Ride, will you marry me?" he asked me, grinning.

I was lost for words for a moment. "Yes," I squeaked, tears spilling over, me grinning like an idiot. He grinned crookedly, placed the ring on my finger, and kissed me.

"AW!!!!!!" I heard someone yell. Guess who? Ally. We broke apart, grinning like mad. The whole Flock, including Carli, Ally, Ella, Alex, Mom, and Jeb emerged from the darkness.

"Lemme see the ring!" Arianna called, pushing her way through the crowd. She grabbed my hand, and then dropped it, stunned. "Holy shit, man! Fang! The ring's beautiful. I want it!" she whined, adding her signature saying, 'Holy shit, man'. She was my best friend for a reason.

"Arianna! No swearing around Ally!" mom yelled.

"Sorry! I couldn't help it! Iggy, come here. I know you've been dying to see what Max looked like, and you HAVE to see her ring!" Iggy emerged from the crowd, taking tentative steps toward us. I held out my hand, waiting for Iggy to touch it.

"Max, no wonder Fang fell for you hard! You're stunning. Now, let me see this ring," he said, making me flush. Fang squeezed my shoulder.

"Now, Iggy, this is what I want if you propose."

"Well, you just might get it," he told her. Her face light up.

"So, you're saying that you're going to propose?!!"

"Maybe."

It went like that for a while, Arianna and Iggy talking, everyone taking turns to see my ring. Carli pulled me aside when Ally was rambling to Fang about being the flower girl.

"Max, do you know how hard that was for him?"

I shook my head. "I really wanted him to, though. We've been dating for four years, and I've lived with him for all of my life. That's what I wished for on the shooting star," I told her, whispering the last part. I was going to cry again. Man, this was awesome. Fang proposed on Christmas. We were getting married. Wow.

"I convinced him that he should propose. I was your age when Jake proposed. Ally is so happy. She can't wait to monopolize all of your time before you have kids. Oh, and you have to come by Max's a lot. The crowd would love to see the actual Maximum Ride in person. We have a ton of pictures on the walls of your adventures. They owe their lives to you."

"Max's?"

"Oh! Fang didn't tell you that he named the restaurant after you?"

"No," I murmured. "And Ally can come over any time. The Flock loves her, especially Arianna, Nudge, and Angel."

"Arianna is amazing with Ally. So are the kids though. Arianna is a born mom."

"Really? 'Cause she does have a bad background. She's part cat, so she's stolen a lot of stuff. But, she's really fun to be around. Angel was drawn to her. She's my best friend."

"That's really good. Stella is really happy for you two. She told me to send her congrats."

"Tell I'll be in on Friday. And I'll come to the restaurant this week. Don't want to let my fans down," I joked. Carli smiled.

"Ally! It's time to go home!"

"But mo-om!" Ally whined. I saw her say bye to everyone, even though she didn't want to. Everyone left, so only me and Fang were alone. I had gotten my Christmas wish.

_Woo! It's over! I'm already thinking about a sequel. I'll have a poll on my prof. I'll have pics up on my prof. too._

_Oh! And I made a website._

_It's on my prof. _

_If you liked it, review, if you didn't, review!_

_If you want the sequel-I need 25 reviews. If I get 20-you get a preview of the sequel. Can you guys do that?_

_I'm asking for a lot more-because I need to focus on my schoolwork. I need to get straight A's. _

_If I don't get my reviews, I don't post. Simple. Review. Please? I BEG OF YOU!!_


	4. AN

_Okay, I would love to thank all of my reviewers in this authors note. You guys have really pulled through, and I will give you a preview of the first chapter of the sequel, due to the amazing reviews I've gotten. I've gotten so many story, and author alerts, favorite author, and favorite story notices, so thank you. I really appreciate it. Anywhoo, on with the reviewers!_

_A special thanks to:_

SmartA55 (x2)

M333gan

darkwarrioroflight

ObSeSsEd-717

hawk without wings

star7170

IggyXxNudge

love is killing me

MaxFangForever1253 (x2)

dallascowboynscountrymusicfan (x2)

Fallen Ark Angel

notjustink (x2)

Passingthroughthefire

Nightsbane-Flock-Protector

Midnightwings4159

jaz719

faximumtwilight023

_Thank you reviewers! I hope you visit the sequel! You probably will. Thank you for the great encouragement I have gotten for the sequel. I will try to post every Friday. Hopefully for all of my stories. ____ I will most likely redo my Maximum Ride: Saving the World Again. I personally think it sucks. Anywhoo, on with the preview from 'So Far Away'._

I lay on the floor, delirious. How could have this happened? What about Fang, the Flock, Ally, Carli? I couldn't just leave them…but I had a choice to make. But, could my choice affect the Flock more than I ever thought it could? Or could it be the right thing to do? This decision will have startling effects-greater than I ever imagined.

The smell of antiseptic filled my nose, making me want to barf. I heard the sliding of doors, and the click of the high heels on the cold floor.

"Well, Max, have you made your decision?" she asked, placing a hand on my stomach. I wanted to murder her.

I took in a deep breath, and answered. "Yes. I'll do it." She smiled with fake sincerity, withdrawing her hands.

"Excellent, Maximum. We'll put you in room TL8. Good luck." With that, she left me alone, me facing the horrible side-effects that I would have to endure.

_I hope you liked it! So Far Away will be taking a darker turn-making them face the past more than they ever wanted. That was the prologue, so, that'll be the first chapter. I don't like just fluff, there has to be some action. And that's exactly what I'm going to twist in. Hope you enjoyed it and I'm gone! __**poof!**_


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